Form 8814: How to Report a Child's Interest and Dividends

Form 8814 lets a parent report a child's interest and dividends on the parent's own Form 1040 instead of filing a separate return for the child. You can use it only when the child's income is limited to interest and dividends and totals less than $13,500 for 2025. This guide covers who qualifies, whether the election saves money, a worked example, and where each number lands on your return.

The figures below come from the IRS 2025 Instructions for Form 8814 (the tax year you file in 2026). Check irs.gov/Form8814 for the current form before you file, because thresholds are adjusted every year.

Who Can Use Form 8814

Two sets of tests apply: one for the child and one for the parent. The child must meet all of these:

• Under age 19 at the end of 2025, or under 24 if a full-time student.
• Income came only from interest and dividends, including capital gain distributions and Alaska Permanent Fund dividends. Wages or other income rule the election out.
• Gross income for the year was less than $13,500.
• The child is required to file a return and does not file a joint return.
• No estimated tax payments were made in the child's name, including a 2024 overpayment applied to 2025, and no federal income tax was withheld from the child's income.

The parent must file Form 1040, 1040-SR, or 1040-NR, and be the right parent. According to the IRS instructions, that means:

• You file jointly with the child's other parent, or
• You are married but file separately and had the higher taxable income, or
• You are unmarried or legally separated and the child lived with you most of the year, or
• You never married the other parent but lived together with the child, and you had the higher taxable income.

You need a separate Form 8814 for each child. You can elect for one child and not another.

Form 8814 vs. Filing the Child's Own Return

For a child with modest investment income, the tax is usually close either way. Under the election, the IRS treats the first $1,350 of the child's income as untaxed and the next $1,350 (up to $2,700) as taxed at 10%. Anything above $2,700 is added to your return and taxed at your rate. A separate return for the child gives similar results: a $1,350 standard deduction, 10% on the next $1,350, then the parent's rate through Form 8615.

The IRS tells parents to figure the tax both ways and use whichever is lower. Higher AGI can also shrink other items on your return, including the child tax credit, education credits, the earned income credit, and student loan interest. The child's income above the base amount is also included in your modified AGI and, where it applies, in net investment income for Form 8960.

Worked Example

Say your 10-year-old has $3,000 of taxable interest from a savings account and nothing else. You are married, file jointly, and are in the 24% bracket.

1. Line 4 (total interest, dividends, and capital gain distributions) is $3,000.
2. Line 5 is the $2,700 base amount.
3. Line 6 is $3,000 minus $2,700, which is $300. This amount is added to your return as interest income.
4. The first $2,700 is handled in the child's tax section of the form: $1,350 is untaxed and $1,350 is taxed at 10%, which is $135.
5. Your extra tax on the $300 is about $72 at 24%, so the total is roughly $207.

If the child filed their own return, the result would be about the same: $1,650 taxable after the standard deduction, with $135 at 10% and $300 at your rate. In that case the election mainly saves you a separate return.

The IRS instructions include their own example. A 6-year-old with $2,190 of qualified dividends and $610 of capital gain distributions has $2,800 of income. Line 6 is $100, line 9 is $78, and line 10 is $22.

Step by Step: Filling Out the PDF

Before you start, collect the child's Forms 1099-INT and 1099-DIV. Then:

1. Open the Form 8814 template in PDF Editify, or upload your own copy at /fill-pdf. Nothing to install.
2. Enter the child's name and Social Security number at the top, then your own name and number as the parent.
3. Line 1a: taxable interest from Form 1099-INT. Leave out tax-exempt interest, which goes on line 1b.
4. Line 2a: ordinary dividends from Form 1099-DIV box 1a. Line 2b: the qualified portion from box 1b, which is already part of line 2a.
5. Line 3: capital gain distributions from Form 1099-DIV box 2a.
6. Line 4: add lines 1a, 2a, and 3. Subtract the $2,700 base on line 5 to get line 6.
7. Complete the ratio lines for qualified dividends and capital gain distributions, which split line 6 into the pieces that go on your return.
8. Complete the child's tax section on the form, then download the finished PDF.

If the child's income is below the filing threshold shown on the form instructions and no tax is due, read the instructions to confirm whether you need the form at all. Line numbers can shift between years, so follow the labels printed on the current form.

Moving Amounts to Form 1040

According to the IRS 2025 instructions, the results transfer like this:

• The qualified dividend amount (line 9) goes on Form 1040 lines 3a and 3b, marked "Form 8814." If your own dividends plus this amount are over $1,500, you also need Schedule B.
• The capital gain distribution amount (line 10) goes on Schedule D line 13, or Form 1040 line 7a if you do not need Schedule D.
• The child's tax on the first $2,700 is added to Form 1040 line 16 with box 1 checked, when you complete that part of the form.

Attach Form 8814 to your Form 1040. For background on the main return, see our guide to what an IRS 1040 form is. If you are also dealing with year-end estimated payments, our Form 1040-ES guide may help.

Filling It Out Without a Subscription

Most families need this form once a year, sometimes once per child. PDF Editify can fill the PDF in your browser, and the One Week Plan is a $3 one-time payment that expires on its own, so there is nothing to cancel. Standard is $10 per month or $100 per year if you want ongoing access, and Lifetime starts at $99 one time. You can try the editor without a card, and exporting needs a plan. Browse more forms in the IRS tax forms library.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Using it when the child had withholding or estimated payments. Either one disqualifies the election.
• Including tax-exempt interest on line 1a. It belongs on line 1b.
• Counting qualified dividends twice. Line 2b is part of line 2a, not an addition to it.
• Skipping the comparison. Run the numbers both ways, especially with large qualified dividends.
• Forgetting state rules. States may handle the election differently, so check your state's instructions.

This article is general information, not tax advice. For a complicated situation, ask a tax professional.